Ethos for individual performance development: descriptions of music majors in college bands

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2031-01-01

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https://hdl.handle.net/2144/12778

Abstract

The purposes of this study were to describe the ethos of individual performance development (EIPD) for music majors in selected American colleges and universities who played wind and percussion instruments, to compare the EIPD between small and large academic institutions, and to compare the EIPD between students who projected that their primary professional activity would be performing on their instrument and other music majors. EIPD was a researcher-designed multivariate construct, adapted from a variable set for an individual learning ethos at institutions of higher education (J0rgensen, 2002). EIPD included the categories ofPractice Quantity, Self-Regulated Learning Characteristics, Motivation Factors, Ancillary Music Activities, and Non-Music Effects. EIPD variables were measured with student ratings on a researcher-designed questionnaire, which was distributed to music majors enrolled in concert wind bands at 31 American colleges/universities. There were 291 participants.
Data were first analyzed to determine means and other descriptive data for the variables ofEIPD. Second, a binomial logistic regression analysis compared the variables ofEIPD between small (<100 music majors) and large (>200 music majors) institutions. Even though large institutions had higher percentages of bachelor of music degree-seeking students and students who believed that achievement on their primary instrument was more important than any other college learning, only 5 out of 44 variables returned significant differences. Also, music majors at small institutions felt a stronger presence from friendly encouragement than they felt from peer competition [t(52) = - 2.45, p = .02]. As a follow-up to these results, an alternate binomial logistic regression was run to see if the students who projected that their careers would primarily be in instrumental performance exhibited different results than the other music majors. Only 4 out of 44 variables returned significant differences, including 3 motivation variables that were more likely to occur in the "professional instrumental performance" group.

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Thesis (D.M.A.)--Boston University
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